NFT and Play to Earn games are revolutionizing the world of video games and are a great investment opportunity to consider.
Currently, there are already running titles like Axie Infinity and many more in development. Among them we will make a selection of NFT and Play to Earn games to consider either for investing, earning money or just having fun while playing.
What are Play to Win games?
Play to Earn games are video games where players can receive rewards of real value. Each game rewards players in different ways, the most common being game-specific NFTs and cryptocurrencies. These rewards can be sold to other players, on exchanges or for-profit marketplaces.
Play to Win games are born by connecting the various digital assets of a game to the blockchain. Any asset that we can find in the game, such as a weapon or a skin, can be minted as a non-fungible token (NFT) that can be saved and transferred between different people, creating in-game economies.
In turn, the mission of game developers is mainly twofold:
- It creates a crowd-pleasing game that manages to attract a large number of users and manages to keep them active.
- Create a sustainable in-game economy, which means that even if players get some profit from the game, the situation can be self-perpetuating over time.
For the economy to be sustained, there must be a certain balance between the rewards given and the income generated by the game. To do this, you can rely on different sources of income like the sale of characters or the commissions earned to access to some of its services.
Top 8 NFT Games and Play to Win
Determining the best NFT and play to win games is difficult as most are in development. For this reason, its playability cannot be known with certainty, whether it will attract a large number of players or estimate how much money can be won.
For this reason, and from an investment point of view, the list of games that we will see next is based on different aspects that can be quantified in one way or another:
- The number of users the game is running on or otherwise measures the size and activity of its community.
- Analyze their development team and the affiliates they have worked on.
- Assess whether the game has private investors.
- Analyze its tokenomy and game economy from a theoretical perspective.
- Analyze the different parts of the game already available: trailers, betas, unique design, game aesthetics, etc.
- Try to get an idea if people will want to play because they like the game proposition or if they are just doing it for the purpose of generating revenue.
Next, we’ll take a look at some of the best NFTs and play to win matches today.
1. Infinite axis
Axie Infinity is heavily inspired by the Pokemon series of games and has an average of 2.8 million daily users. Players raise and acquire digital pets called Axies to battle other players.
The core of the game is to engage in tactical combat based on the abilities of the Axies, determined primarily by four attributes: Health, Speed, Dexterity, and Morale. These attributes determine your performance in combat.
Cryptocurrencies are received by winning battles, so the goal of players is to be tactically good and have the best Axies to earn more money.
game economy
To play it is necessary to make an initial investment and buy 3 Axies. Axes are NFTs and can be bought and sold primarily on the in-game market.
On the other hand, we have the two in-game cryptocurrencies:
- Smooth Love Potion (SLP): It is a token that is received by winning battles and used to spawn new Axes.
- Axie infinity (AXS): This is the governing token of the game and allows stacking, i.e. keeping tokens locked to gain advantages.
The game’s accumulated revenue according to the terminal’s token platform has reached $1.2 billion and comes mainly from two sources: commissions for using the market and fees for creating new Axies.
2. Iluvius
Illuvium is a game to watch, as blockchain games in general tend to have a lower budget when it comes to graphics quality. Illuvium is bucking this trend and creating a Triple AAA game based on Unreal Engine 4.
It’s an open world where players are hunters and capture creatures called Illuvials. These creatures are NFT like in Axie infinity but their combat system is supposed to be more fun, improved and have much better 3D effects.
Its beta version is already running and it is possible to register through its website to try one of its first game modes, the PvE Survival mode.
game economy
This project is an example of the different ways to make money with a crypto game and the different sources of income they can have.
As for Illuvium’s revenue streams, they can be divided into two categories:
- In-game purchases such as cosmetic upgrades.
- Fees charged in the market and exchange fees also charged when you have your own exchange in the near future
On the user side we have the ILV token, with which we can make profits by revaluing it, in addition to performing leverage and stacking to earn interest by keeping the tokens locked. There is a second token, sILV, which is used as the in-game currency.
In terms of NFTs, we have the buying and selling of Illuvials, which allows players to gain benefits by selling them, as well as the game itself with transaction fees. And soon we will have land purchases, which are in-game lands.
It was a bit of a summary, but you can check how complete the economy of this game is.
3. Box with sand
Sandbox is a metaverse inspired by games like Roblox and Minecraft, but integrating blockchain technology to create its own economy.
In this game, users can create, trade virtual assets and most importantly buy digital land to create experiences to share with other users.
A large number of companies have purchased land in the Sandbox, including: sneakers Yes Atari video game company.
game economy
The game’s native token is called SAND and is used to pay for all transactions that take place in the metaverse.
On the other hand, we have LAND tokens, which are NFTs that are used to define the ownership of an area in the game.
Lands are the most valuable assets in the game, as they are limited in number and allow their owners to create custom spaces and conduct activities there. An example is Sandbox’s agreement with Warner Music will hold virtual concerts at this time.
4. Heroes of Sidus
Sidus Heroes is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) set in a futuristic open world.
They are currently in development, but have a working demo that can be played through the web browser, as well as the upcoming game when released, keeping good graphics quality.
If you want to know more I leave you the link to their site where you can try Demo of Sidus Heroes.
game economy
Heroes are the main avatars in the game and are NFTs that can be found in the Opensea market.
The metaverse currency is SIDUS and players can use it to customize characters, weapons, buy supplies, loot boxes, pay for resources, and collect pets and heroes.
The SENAT token makes it easy to create and manage different factions by voting, buying plots and ships and upgrading space stations.
5. The Big Moment
Big Time is an RPG in which players assume the role of time-traveling heroes and battle through different points in history.
Among the NFT games in development, this is one of the most anticipated and highest quality. The production is entrusted to the company Big Time Studios, which it has good funding and with a very talented team.
game economy
Big Time has created a circular economy where users can play games, earn rewards, and build their own universe.
On the one hand we have SPACE Token, of which there will be no presale or ICO and the main way to obtain it will be through gambling.
And to get this token as a reward, we must first have SPACE NFT, either by playing or buying it in the market. These NFTs are the basis of the game around which revolve the rest of the elements (timer, forge, hourglass…) that will influence the profitability that we can play.
6. Star Atlas
Star Atlas is a game that combines space exploration with mining, trading and combat.
It aims to deliver high quality gameplay similar to regular Triple-A games and will try to deliver on its promise that standard quality games can definitely find use in NFT.
They’re currently in development and slated for release later this year, so player versus player (PvP) and player versus environment (PvE) modes don’t work, but their market does.
game economy
NFTs are an important part of the economy and it is already possible to invest in a fleet by buying ships and also items to use in the game.
On the other hand, it has two tokens:
- ATLAS: Will be the native currency of the metaverse and will be used by players to purchase digital items, equipment ships, components, land or fuel.
- POLIS: is the symbol of the government that will allow you to influence the development and economy of the game.
7. God is a coward
Gods Unchained is a collectible card game similar to the famous Magic: The Gathering Arena. In fact, the person running the game, Chris Clay, has already done this in the aforementioned Magic game.
The idea of the game is to fight against other players using the cards and their possible combinations. Each card has its own stats, strengths, and weaknesses that you need to take advantage of. It’s a strategy game designed for good players to win, and it’s not just the value of your hand that matters.
game economy
As the main part, we have letters which are NFTs which can be traded in the market. To avoid the high fees of the Ethereum network, the Immutable X market is used, which is a scalability solution that allows cheaper transactions.
On the one hand, we have GODS tokens that players can use to buy and sell on the market, create new cards and earn rewards for game winnings.
8. Thetan Arena
Thetan Arena is a strategic fighting game where you can meet your friends, form a team, fight against others and earn rewards. It’s a combination of personal skills and teamwork.
It is a fully functional game and has a total of around 22 million players according to its official page.
game economy
Thetan Arena is a clear example of the problems facing new blockchain games: their economy must be sustainable.
In this case, and despite having a large player base, their THC reward token has been steadily declining since the game’s release. This means that lately it’s only profitable to play for money in very specific situations, because with such a low token value, a very high percentage of game winnings is required.
However, since the beginning of 2022, steps are being taken to improve the economy and other game issues, which could make it a good investment in the future both through the purchase of its token and the rewards earned through play.
Other blockchain and gaming cryptocurrencies to invest in
In addition to the previous list, there are many other interesting games and game projects. I’ll leave you with a few of them in case you want to investigate for yourself.
Gaming-related cryptocurrency projects
- Verasity (VRA): A video streaming project that wants to create a fair system for content creators and advertisers.
- Ultra (UOS): is a publishing platform for video games and related content. It is similar to the STEAM gaming platform, but attempts to provide new opportunities for developers, gamers, and influencers.
- Gala Games (GALA): Platform that publishes various nft and play to win games.
- Vulcan Forged (PYR): blockchain-related video game studio that includes an NFT marketplace.
- Yield Guild Games (YGG) – is a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) that invests in digital assets through a community of players and investors.
- Seedify.fund (SFUND): is a seed platform specializing in blockchain games.
- DeFi Kingdoms (JEWEL): Decentralized financial services through gamification and medieval aesthetics.
NFT games with potential for the future
- Guild of Guardians (GOG) – Mobile RPG game where players can build their teams of Guardians to compete for tradable rewards.
- Mouse Haunt (MHT): Cooperative game created in 2018 which is improved and blockchain technology is added.
- Voxies (VOXEL): Voxie tactics is a free tactical combat game designed in a retro style.
- Cryowar (CWAR): real-time multiplayer game with a medieval sci-fi aesthetic. Originally developed for mobile devices, with various combat modes and short-term games.
- Imposters – metaverse and deduction game similar to the rest of us.
- Outer Ring (GQ): Massively multiplayer online game in an open world and in the third person, based on the different abilities of different types of characters.
- Mobland (SYNR): Mob-themed game and metaverse with a reputable development team.
- Sipher (SIPHER) – action game with a very active community.
- Decimated (DIO): First-person survival game with a style that has some similarities to Fornite.
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